


That Night in Bed

by memorizingthedigitsofpi



Series: A June Wedding [4]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Kissing, ish, missing moment, much requested scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2017-08-30
Packaged: 2018-12-21 14:12:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11945937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/memorizingthedigitsofpi/pseuds/memorizingthedigitsofpi
Summary: After a day full of pretending to be more than just best friends, Jemma and Fitz are starting to think they might want to do more than just pretend.Missing moment from my ficA June Wedding. Takes place afterChapter 16. Context provided, but you might be confused if you haven't read that one first.





	That Night in Bed

The events of the last few days swirled around Fitz and Jemma as they lay in Jemma’s childhood bed and stared up at the ceiling in the darkness. It had all started with their mothers insisting they attend Jemma’s cousins wedding, pretending to be a couple. It was ostensibly to please Jemma’s grandmother, Evelyn, but both Emma Simmons and Geri Fitz were heavily invested in their children falling in love, as well.

Jemma and Fitz knew their mothers wanted them to pretend, but they didn’t know Evelyn was in on it. Emma and Geri thought their respective children were doing an admirable job of pretending… and possibly _more_ than pretending? But they had no idea that their kids were attempting to play them at their own game.

As for Jemma’s father, Jezza? He was far too confused to have any idea what was really going on. His wife had brought him in on her plan and his daughter had brought him in on hers, and around nearly every corner he was brought up short by seeing something that led him to a third conclusion entirely. He might have a PhD in astronomy and a very clear idea of what love was, but he couldn’t make heads nor tails out of this entire weekend so far.

The rehearsal had had a few bumps in the road, but the dinner and drinks afterwards had gone well enough. Fitz and Jemma had had to put their “practice” to good use as one relative after another had wanted a photo of the new couple kissing or hugging or otherwise making heart eyes at each other.

Once everyone else had left, their parents had decided to tease them about the whole thing and, in keeping with the roller coaster of plot twists that cropped up every five to ten minutes, the conversation had ended up with Jemma declaring her love for her best friend and him echoing the sentiment strongly.

Was it really just a few days ago that they’d been sitting in Jemma’s office as she’d told Fitz about their spontaneous vacation plans?

As they lay on Jemma’s bed, neither of them spoke. They’d gotten into bed with an awkward space between them and a stiffness in their bodies that they didn’t usually have around each other, but time and conversation had soothed their unease somewhat. They'd migrated toward the centre of the bed without really realizing it, and Fitz's left arm and leg were now pressed up against Jemma's right ones.

After a few minutes of companionable silence, Jemma spoke up softly.

"Fitz?" she whispered.

"Yeah? he answered, just as quietly.

"About the- the kissing," she said a bit nervously. She’d complained about it downstairs, and she was worried that he might have gotten the wrong impression.

"Mmhmm?" he asked, not sure what to say. What _did_ you say after you’d spent half your day kissing your best friend only to have her moan about how horrid it was to her parents?

"I didn't mean the _kisses_ were bad, you know, when I was complaining about it," she explained quickly. "I just meant it was horrible having to do it in front of all of my relatives like that."

"Oh," Fitz said. He blinked a few times. _That_ certainly changed things. "So..."

"Mmhmm?"

"You...," he cleared his throat awkwardly. He wasn’t always careful with his words, but this was one instance where he wanted to tread lightly.  "The kissing was... good?" he asked, feeling a tightness in his chest as he awaited her response.

Jemma took a deep breath and pressed her lips together for a moment. She had a feeling that her answer here placed her on the edge of a yawning chasm, at the bottom of which was complete uncertainty. Either everything would change as a result of it or nothing would. She was scared to realize she didn’t know which result she wanted.

"Very," she whispered back.

They lay there quietly again, but this time the silence was charged with possibilities that made them both feel rather tense.

"Jemma?" Fitz finally said. His heart was beating hard in his chest, so much so that he wondered if she could hear it.

"Yes?" she whispered back, not at all sure what she wanted him to say.

It was like jumping off a bridge into no man’s land when he said, "I thought the kissing was pretty brilliant."

Jemma’s heard skipped the proverbial beat. "Oh."

That’s what she always said when he surprised her. She was still processing. But if he didn’t push forward, he might lose his chance. "Yes."

Jemma licked her lips as a thrill ran through her. Perhaps she _did_ know the result she wanted after all. She shifted closer to him on the mattress, reaching out to press her hand lightly against his chest.

"Well then."

Fitz swallowed hard as Jemma moved closer, mirroring her movements until he could feel her breath on his face.

"Mmhmm."

The silence stretched out between them, full of meaning and promise and possibility. In the dim light of the room, their eyes met and held. They both smiled. Were they really going to do this? With no one watching? For the benefit of no one but the two of them?

Finally, the blankets rustled with the movements under them, and then the only sounds in the room were sighs.

Jemma’s hand pressed more firmly on Fitz’s chest, balling his tshirt into her fist as his hand rested at her waist. At the same time, they pulled each other closer, their lips meeting without any hesitation, just like they had in front of Laura and Tinny.

There was no need to go slowly after a day full of kisses. This wasn’t an introduction, it was an exploration.

Lips parted and tongues pressed inside. Sighs got louder and sheets rustled further as their legs tangled together and their bodies moved so close there was no space between them anymore.

Before long, events had their predictable effect on Fitz, and he pulled back from Jemma with a gasp and a wide-eyed expression.

“Sorry,” he apologized, trying to pull away. “I’m not trying to-“

“I know,” Jemma said, pulling him back in. “It’s alright.”

“But-“  

Things were moving very quickly right now, and they hadn’t really talked about what it might all mean for them once this weekend was over.  Groaning and hating himself for doing it, Fitz dragged a hand down his face and leaned away from her.

Jemma didn’t need to be psychic to see the conflicting emotions on Fitz’s face, even dim moonlight streaming into her darkened room.

“But?” she asked. Her hand pressed flat against his chest, and she could feel the staccato beat of his heart through his shirt.

Fitz’s eyes pleaded with her not to make him say it. He didn’t want to be the one to ruin things.

Jemma smiled and nodded in understanding. “But what about when we go home?” she asked.

He nodded and sighed. “Is this all just us getting carried away?” he asked. “Or were our mums right?” He chuckled softly. “Don’t tell my mum I said that, alright?”

Jemma laughed quietly. “I won’t, if you don’t tell my mum the same thing.”

“Deal.”

Silence descended again as they held each other close, but not as close as before. Gradually, their hearts returned to beating at a normal pace.

“We can always keep pretending for now,” Jemma finally suggested. “Sort of try it out and see what we think of things, and then decide if we want to try it for real once we get back to America. I doubt we’ll have much chance to talk before then, anyway.”

“And if we decide not to, then it’s just a funny story from a visit back home?” Fitz asked skeptically.

“Exactly,” Jemma nodded. Her stomach had tightened when Fitz had suggested they might not decide to continue like this, but she just thought it was because of the too-sweet drinks that Laura and Tinny and the rest had served after dinner.

“But for now, we can still kiss?” he asked, his face plastered with a ridiculously hopeful grin.

“ _Tomorrow_ ,” Jemma said firmly, laughing and smiling back.

Fitz pulled her gently into his arms and kissed her forehead, and Jemma settled in with an easy familiarity she wouldn’t have thought possible even just the day before. Cuddled up together, it wasn’t long before their eyes drifted shut and they slept.


End file.
